Pennsylvania Route 321 (PA 321) is a state highway located in Elk and McKean counties in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania, maintained by the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation (PennDOT). The southern terminus is at U.S. Route 219 (US 219) in the community of Wilcox. The northern terminus is at PA 346 within the Allegheny National Forest. PA 321 heads northwest from Wilcox through rural areas to the borough of Kane, where it forms a brief concurrency with US 6. North of here, the route passes through the national forest and runs along the shore of the Allegheny Reservoir. PA 321 runs east briefly with PA 59 before winding north through more forest to its northern terminus. A portion of the route along the Allegheny Reservoir is designated as the Longhouse National Scenic Byway, a Pennsylvania Scenic Byway and National Forest Scenic Byway.
The road between Wilcox and Kane was designated as part of Legislative Route 97 (LR 97) in 1911 and as part of PA 6 in 1924. US 119 became concurrent with PA 6 in 1926 before US 219 replaced both designations on this stretch of road two years later. The road between Kane and Kinzua was built in the late 1920s and became an extension of PA 68 in 1935. In 1952, US 219 was relocated off the road between Wilcox and Kane. Plans were made to construct the Kinzua Dam in 1960, and several new roads would need to be built to accommodate the reservoir including a relocation of PA 68. In 1961, the PA 321 designation was approved for the unnumbered road between Wilcox and Kane and PA 68 between Kane and Kinzua in order to provide an access road to the planned recreation area; signs were posted the following year.
In the mid-1960s, improvements were planned for PA 321. The PA 321 designation north of Kane was removed in 1966. In the late 1960s, the section between north of Kane and PA 346 was constructed, including a new alignment between Red Bridge and PA 59. Work on the segment north of Kane took place in the early 1970s. In Kane, PA 321 was relocated from following US 6 through the downtown area to use Hacker Street to the east, with reconstruction finished in 1973. The road between Wilcox and Kane, including a bypass of the former, was rebuilt in the mid-1970s. In 1974, PA 321 was extended from US 6 in Kane north to PA 346.
Route description
PA 321 begins at an intersection with US 219 in the community of Wilcox in Jones Township, Elk County, heading north on two-lane undivided Buena Vista Highway. The road bypasses the center of Wilcox to the west as it passes through an industrial area. The highway crosses the West Branch Clarion River and curves northwest into forests. The route runs through Dahoga and continues along the eastern border of Allegheny National Forest, with a Buffalo and Pittsburgh Railroad line a short distance to the west of the road.
PA 321 enters Wetmore Township in McKean County and becomes Brickyard Road, departing the Allegheny National Forest. The road continues through rural land, passing through Sergeant and East Kane. The route heads into the borough of Kane and becomes Westerberg Way, running through industrial areas as it crosses an abandoned railroad line and comes to an intersection with US 6. Here, PA 321 turns west briefly for a concurrency with US 6 on Biddle Street, immediately turning north-northwest onto Hacker Street, where it is lined with homes. After passing Glenwood Park, the road curves northeast as Kinzua Avenue and leaves Kane for Wetmore Township, becoming Kane-Marshburg Road and heading north-northwest into wooded areas. The route re-enters the Allegheny National Forest and continues northwest, crossing into Hamilton Township and intersecting Longhouse Drive.
PA 321 comes to a bridge over the Kinzua Creek arm of the Allegheny Reservoir near the Red Bridge Recreation Area, which contains a picnic area, a campground, and a bank fishing area. From here, the highway follows the northeastern shore of the reservoir, passing through Dunkle Corners. The road turns to the east and runs along the south shore of Chappel Bay, soon heading away from the reservoir and turning northeast. The route continues into Corydon Township and reaches an intersection with PA 59 near the Bradford Ranger Station.
At this point, PA 321 turns east for a concurrency with PA 59 and the name remains Kane-Marshburg Road. The road leaves the national forest and heads through the community of Klondike before PA 321 splits to the northwest onto Sugar Run Road in Lafayette Township. The road crosses back into Corydon Township and runs through more of the Allegheny National Forest. The route passes to the north of a section of the Allegheny Reservoir again and turns to the northeast. PA 321 winds north and serves the Tracy Ridge Trailhead, which consists of a campground and hiking trails leading to the reservoir. The route comes to its northern terminus at PA 346 a short distance south of the New York border.
The portion of PA 321 between Longhouse Drive and PA 59 is part of the Longhouse National Scenic Byway, a Pennsylvania Scenic Byway and National Forest Scenic Byway that encircles the Kinzua Creek arm of the Allegheny Reservoir and serves multiple recreational areas. In 2015, PA 321 had an annual average daily traffic count ranging from a high of 4,300 vehicles along the US 6 concurrency in Kane to a low of 100 vehicles between PA 59 and PA 346. The portion of PA 321 that is concurrent with US 6 is part of the National Highway System.
History The PA 321 designation was approved by the Pennsylvania Department of Highways (PDH) in 1961, replacing what was known as "Old 219" between Wilcox and Kane and a portion of PA 68 between Kane and Kinzua; signs were installed the following year. Plans for improving PA 321 were announced in 1963, including a new alignment north of Red Bridge to PA 59 that would follow the shore of the Allegheny Reservoir. In 1965, construction began on a portion of the road between north of Kane and Red Bridge. Signage for PA 321 north of Kane was removed in 1966. The portion of PA 321 in the Red Bridge area was completed in 1966 while the section south of Red Bridge to north of Kane was finished the following year. In 1967, construction began on the new alignment between Red Bridge and PA 59, which was finished the next year. The road between PA 59 near Marshburg and the New York border was completed in 1968. Construction of the of PA 321 north of Kane took place between 1970 and 1971. Construction of the section of PA 321 between East Kane and Kane and along Hacker Streey in Kane occurred from 1972 to 1973. The final section of the route between Wilcox and East Kane was rebuilt between 1972 and 1975.
Designation
Following the passage of the Sproul Road Bill in 1911, the highway between Wilcox and Kane was incorporated as part of LR 97. The Wilcox-Kane road was built in the mid-1920s. In 1925, this roadway became a part of PA 6 (the Buffalo-Pittsburgh Highway), which ran from the Maryland border near Meyersdale north to Bradford. With the creation of the U.S. Highway System on November 11, 1926, US 119 was cosigned with PA 6 on this stretch of road. US 219 replaced the US 119/PA 6 designation between Wilcox and Kane in 1928. The roadway between Kane and Red Bridge was improved by Works Progress Administration labor between 1929 and 1930 in order to "get the rural areas 'out of the mud'." The road was built with a soft stone base that would not handle the heavier traffic volumes that would later use the road. This section of highway was patched by the state several times in order to keep it usable for traffic. The road between Kane and Kinzua became a northward extension of PA 68 in 1935. Plans were announced in 1949 for a direct alignment of US 219 between Wilcox and Lantz Corners to bypass the westerly jog to Kane. In 1952, US 219 was relocated off the roadway between Wilcox and Kane and US 6 between Kane and Lantz Corners to use the new direct alignment.
In 1960, plans were made to construct the Kinzua Dam in the Allegheny National Forest, with road relocations necessary for the new reservoir that would be formed. Among the roads that would need to be moved was PA 68 between Kane and Kinzua. The route was to be relocated to follow the shore of the reservoir before coming to an intersection with PA 59. This new road would provide access to the Kinzua Dam from Kane. A meeting was held on February 24, 1960, between state and federal officials to discuss the road relocations for the dam construction, including PA 68. Plans were announced in March 1961 to repave "Old Route 219" between Wilcox and Kane, with completion planned for the summer. The next month, the Special Highways Committee of the Kane Chamber of Commerce planned to meet with the supervisor of the Allegheny National Forest to discuss access roads to the Kinzua Dam. Among the ideas offered was extending PA 255 from Johnsonburg north to Kane, running concurrent with US 219 between Johnsonburg and Wilcox and following the unnumbered road between Wilcox and Kane. By May of that year, no decision was made on how PA 68 would be routed to the north of Red Bridge with the construction of the Kinzua Dam.
In 1961, the Special Highways Committee recommended a new designation for LR 97 between Wilcox and Kane, which was known as "Old 219", along with improving the Wilcox-Kane road and PA 68 between Kane and Red Bridge. A new road was favored north of Red Bridge to serve the proposed recreational area at the Allegheny Reservoir. The PA 321 designation was approved by the PDH on December 7 of that year. The route replaced LR 97 between Wilcox and Kane, where it joined US 6 and followed that route to the Easton Street intersection. Between Kane and Kinzua, PA 321 replaced a section of PA 68, with the northern terminus of PA 68 cut back to US 6/PA 321 at the intersection of Fraley and Greeves streets in Kane. The new designation was suggested by the president of the Kane Chamber of Commerce, Victor Westerberg, to provide a connection to the Kinzua Dam via Kane. The roadway north of Kane was also designated as LR 42003. PA 321 was signed between Wilcox and Kinzua in May 1962.
Signage for PA 321 from Kane northward had been removed by March 1966 as that section of road was under construction, with the northern terminus of the route moved to US 6 at the south end of Kane. In April 1968, signage was installed in Kane pointing the way to the Kinzua Dam via US 6; PA 321 remained unsigned pending the completion of the road north of Kane. With the construction of PA 321, the route remained unsigned north of Kane. In addition, there were a lack of signs at the PA 59 intersection pointing the way to Kane and a lack of signage in Kane directing motorists to attractions in the Kinzua Dam area. Also, a 1972 map from the Pennsylvania Game Commission incorrectly labeled PA 66 north into Kane along with the road between Kane and the Kinzua Dam area as PA 68. Plans were announced to improve signage between the two points in September 1972. In June 1974, PA 321 was signed between US 6 in Kane and PA 346 near the New York border. On May 7, 1990, the portion of PA 321 between Longhouse Drive and PA 59 was designated as the Longhouse National Scenic Byway, a National Forest Scenic Byway.
Planning When PA 321 was designated in 1961, improvement work along the section between Kane and Wilcox along with the portion between Kane and Red Bridge was planned for spring 1962. In February 1963, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) and the Allegheny National Forest agreed that PA 321 would be relocated to a new alignment following the shore of the reservoir north to PA 59.